IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/eneeco/v86y2020ics0140988319304517.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Can value-added tax incentives of new energy industry increase firm's profitability? Evidence from financial data of China's listed companies

Author

Listed:
  • Sun, Chuanwang
  • Zhan, Yanhong
  • Du, Gang

Abstract

Tax incentives for new energy industry have been adopted at various stages of an emerging economy. However, there is little evidence on the effectiveness of tax incentives from the perspective of firm's profitability. We compare value-added tax (VAT) incentives in different kinds of new energy enterprises in China and study the effect of VAT incentives on new energy listed companies through the Difference-In-Difference (DID) approach empirically. The results show that VAT refunds of new energy industry could decrease the return on equity (ROE) of the experiment group, which is lower than the control group by 4.7%. This is mainly due to the distorted industrial chain, overcapacity and insufficient innovation motivation caused by the tax incentives. We also find out that the policy impact has a time lag and varies considerably across time by examining the dynamic effects of VAT incentives. This study provides some new evidence on the efficiency of tax incentives toward new energy industry by firm-level data.

Suggested Citation

  • Sun, Chuanwang & Zhan, Yanhong & Du, Gang, 2020. "Can value-added tax incentives of new energy industry increase firm's profitability? Evidence from financial data of China's listed companies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:86:y:2020:i:c:s0140988319304517
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2019.104654
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140988319304517
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.eneco.2019.104654?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jacobson, Louis S & LaLonde, Robert J & Sullivan, Daniel G, 1993. "Earnings Losses of Displaced Workers," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 83(4), pages 685-709, September.
    2. Ghaith, Ahmad F. & Epplin, Francis M., 2017. "Consequences of a carbon tax on household electricity use and cost, carbon emissions, and economics of household solar and wind," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 159-168.
    3. Louis S. Jacobson & Robert J. LaLonde & Daniel G. Sullivan, 1993. "Long-term earnings losses of high-seniority displaced workers," Economic Perspectives, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, vol. 17(Nov), pages 2-20.
    4. Thorsten Beck & Ross Levine & Alexey Levkov, 2010. "Big Bad Banks? The Winners and Losers from Bank Deregulation in the United States," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 65(5), pages 1637-1667, October.
    5. Uyterlinde, Martine A. & Junginger, Martin & de Vries, Hage J. & Faaij, Andre P.C. & Turkenburg, Wim C., 2007. "Implications of technological learning on the prospects for renewable energy technologies in Europe," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(8), pages 4072-4087, August.
    6. Gunnar Luderer & Robert C. Pietzcker & Samuel Carrara & Harmen-Sytze de Boer & Shinichiro Fujimori & Nils Johnson & Silvana Mima & Douglas Arent, 2017. "Assessment of wind and solar power in global low-carbon energy scenarios: An introduction," Post-Print hal-01515408, HAL.
    7. Luderer, Gunnar & Pietzcker, Robert C. & Carrara, Samuel & de Boer, Harmen Sytze & Fujimori, Shinichiro & Johnson, Nils & Mima, Silvana & Arent, Douglas, 2017. "Assessment of wind and solar power in global low-carbon energy scenarios: An introduction," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 542-551.
    8. Villca-Pozo, Milenka & Gonzales-Bustos, Juan Pablo, 2019. "Tax incentives to modernize the energy efficiency of the housing in Spain," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 530-538.
    9. Jonathan Gruber & James M. Poterba, 1993. "Tax Incentives and the Decision to Purchase Health Insurance: Evidence from the Self-Employed," NBER Working Papers 4435, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Gilbert E. Metcalf, 2010. "Investment in Energy Infrastructure and the Tax Code," NBER Chapters, in: Tax Policy and the Economy, Volume 24, pages 1-33, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. Wang, Jin, 2013. "The economic impact of Special Economic Zones: Evidence from Chinese municipalities," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 133-147.
    12. Feldstein, Martin, 1995. "The Effect of Marginal Tax Rates on Taxable Income: A Panel Study of the 1986 Tax Reform Act," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 103(3), pages 551-572, June.
    13. Yang, Zhenbing & Shao, Shuai & Yang, Lili & Liu, Jianghua, 2017. "Differentiated effects of diversified technological sources on energy-saving technological progress: Empirical evidence from China's industrial sectors," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 1379-1388.
    14. Hirth, Lion & Müller, Simon, 2016. "System-friendly wind power," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 51-63.
    15. Alberini, Anna & Bigano, Andrea, 2015. "How effective are energy-efficiency incentive programs? Evidence from Italian homeowners," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(S1), pages 76-85.
    16. Zhang, Sufang & Andrews-Speed, Philip & Zhao, Xiaoli & He, Yongxiu, 2013. "Interactions between renewable energy policy and renewable energy industrial policy: A critical analysis of China's policy approach to renewable energies," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 342-353.
    17. Petra Moser & Alessandra Voena, 2012. "Compulsory Licensing: Evidence from the Trading with the Enemy Act," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 102(1), pages 396-427, February.
    18. Cansino, José M. & Pablo-Romero, María del P. & Román, Rocío & Yñiguez, Rocío, 2010. "Tax incentives to promote green electricity: An overview of EU-27 countries," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(10), pages 6000-6008, October.
    19. Sumit Agarwal & Wenlan Qian, 2014. "Consumption and Debt Response to Unanticipated Income Shocks: Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Singapore," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(12), pages 4205-4230, December.
    20. Marianne Bertrand & Esther Duflo & Sendhil Mullainathan, 2004. "How Much Should We Trust Differences-In-Differences Estimates?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 119(1), pages 249-275.
    21. Jonathan Gruber & James Poterba, 1994. "Tax Incentives and the Decision to Purchase Health Insurance: Evidence from the Self-Employed," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 109(3), pages 701-733.
    22. Zhang, Huiming & Zheng, Yu & Ozturk, U. Aytun & Li, Shanjun, 2016. "The impact of subsidies on overcapacity: A comparison of wind and solar energy companies in China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 821-827.
    23. Markandya, Anil & Ortiz, Ramon Arigoni & Mudgal, Shailendra & Tinetti, Benoit, 2009. "Analysis of tax incentives for energy-efficient durables in the EU," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(12), pages 5662-5674, December.
    24. Nada Eissa, 1995. "Taxation and Labor Supply of Married Women: The Tax Reform Act of 1986 as a Natural Experiment," NBER Working Papers 5023, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    25. Ibhagui, Oyakhilome W. & Olokoyo, Felicia O., 2018. "Leverage and firm performance: New evidence on the role of firm size," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 57-82.
    26. Freire-González, Jaume & Puig-Ventosa, Ignasi, 2019. "Reformulating taxes for an energy transition," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 312-323.
    27. May, Nils, 2017. "The impact of wind power support schemes on technology choices," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 343-354.
    28. Cherni, Judith A. & Kentish, Joanna, 2007. "Renewable energy policy and electricity market reforms in China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(7), pages 3616-3629, July.
    29. Vincenzo Andrietti & Vincent A. Hildebrand, 2016. "Evaluating Pension Portability Reforms: The Tax Reform Act Of 1986 As A Natural Experiment Abstract," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 54(3), pages 1402-1424, July.
    30. Feldstein, Martin, 1995. "The Effect of Marginal Tax Rates on Taxable Income: A Panel Study of the 1986 Tax Reform Act," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 103(3), pages 551-572, June.
    31. Traber, Thure & Kemfert, Claudia, 2011. "Gone with the wind? -- Electricity market prices and incentives to invest in thermal power plants under increasing wind energy supply," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 249-256, March.
    32. Rochelle M. Edge & Jeremy B. Rudd, 2010. "General-equilibrium effects of investment tax incentives," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2010-17, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
    33. Wang, Han & Chen, Zhoupeng & Wu, Xingyi & Nie, Xin, 2019. "Can a carbon trading system promote the transformation of a low-carbon economy under the framework of the porter hypothesis? —Empirical analysis based on the PSM-DID method," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 930-938.
    34. Sánchez-Braza, Antonio & Cansino, José M. & Lerma, Enrique, 2014. "Main drivers for local tax incentives to promote electric vehicles: The Spanish case," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 1-9.
    35. Shen, Jianfei & Luo, Chen, 2015. "Overall review of renewable energy subsidy policies in China – Contradictions of intentions and effects," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 1478-1488.
    36. Rochelle M. Edge & Jeremy B. Rudd, 2010. "General-Equilibrium Effects of Investment Tax Incentives," CAMA Working Papers 2010-03, Centre for Applied Macroeconomic Analysis, Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University.
    37. Zhang, Yue-Jun & Peng, Yu-Lu & Ma, Chao-Qun & Shen, Bo, 2017. "Can environmental innovation facilitate carbon emissions reduction? Evidence from China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 18-28.
    38. Binz, Christian & Gosens, Jorrit & Hansen, Teis & Hansen, Ulrich Elmer, 2017. "Toward Technology-Sensitive Catching-Up Policies: Insights from Renewable Energy in China," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 418-437.
    39. Xu, Bin & Lin, Boqiang, 2018. "Do we really understand the development of China's new energy industry?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 733-745.
    40. Wiser, Ryan & Bolinger, Mark & Barbose, Galen, 2007. "Using the Federal Production Tax Credit to Build a Durable Market for Wind Power in the United States," The Electricity Journal, Elsevier, vol. 20(9), pages 77-88, November.
    41. Barradale, Merrill Jones, 2010. "Impact of public policy uncertainty on renewable energy investment: Wind power and the production tax credit," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(12), pages 7698-7709, December.
    42. Li, Pei & Lu, Yi & Wang, Jin, 2016. "Does flattening government improve economic performance? Evidence from China," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 18-37.
    43. Yan, Shiyu, 2018. "The economic and environmental impacts of tax incentives for battery electric vehicles in Europe," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 53-63.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Sun, Chuanwang & Zhan, Yanhong & Gao, Xiang, 2023. "Does environmental regulation increase domestic value-added in exports? An empirical study of cleaner production standards in China," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).
    2. Tjia Siauw Jan & Zainal Muttaqin & Lastuti Abubakar, 2021. "Factors Affecting Tax Incentives of Energy Companies Listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 11(6), pages 328-334.
    3. Wang, Miao & Feng, Chao, 2020. "The impacts of technological gap and scale economy on the low-carbon development of China's industries: An extended decomposition analysis," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    4. Nie, Yongyou & Cheng, Dandan & Liu, Kui, 2020. "The effectiveness of environmental authoritarianism: Evidence from China's administrative inquiry for environmental protection," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    5. Junguo Shi & Xinyi Yuan & Bert M. Sadowski & Kou Kou & Xuhua Hu & Sihan Li & Shanshan Dou, 2022. "VAT Reform, Regional Ownership Structure, and Industrial Upgrading: Evidence From Firms in Northeast China," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(2), pages 21582440221, April.
    6. Chang, Kai & Xue, Chenqi & Zhang, Huijia & Zeng, Yonghong, 2022. "The effects of green fiscal policies and R&D investment on a firm's market value: New evidence from the renewable energy industry in China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 251(C).
    7. Zhang, Shengling & Wang, Yao & Hao, Yu & Liu, Zhiwei, 2021. "Shooting two hawks with one arrow: Could China's emission trading scheme promote green development efficiency and regional carbon equality?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    8. Jing Tang & Shilong Li, 2022. "How Do Environmental Regulation and Environmental Decentralization Affect Regional Green Innovation? Empirical Research from China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(12), pages 1-16, June.
    9. Yunwei Li & Qiuping Ji & Zijie Wang & Zishan Xiong & Simeng Zhan & Yiping Yang & Yu Hao, 2022. "Green energy mismatch, industrial intelligence and economics growth: theory and empirical evidence from China," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(10), pages 11785-11816, October.
    10. Hao, Yu & Gai, Zhiqiang & Wu, Haitao, 2020. "How do resource misallocation and government corruption affect green total factor energy efficiency? Evidence from China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    11. Yuming Zhang & Chao Xing & David Tripe, 2020. "Redistribution of China’s Green Credit Policy among Environment-Friendly Manufacturing Firms of Various Sizes: Do Banks Value Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(1), pages 1-28, December.
    12. Dongmin Kong & Mengxu Xiong, 2021. "Unintended consequences of tax incentives on export product quality: Evidence from a natural experiment in China," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(4), pages 802-837, September.
    13. Jia, Zhijie, 2023. "The hidden benefit: Emission trading scheme and business performance of downstream enterprises," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    14. Ouyang, Xiaoling & Fang, Xingming & Cao, Yan & Sun, Chuanwang, 2020. "Factors behind CO2 emission reduction in Chinese heavy industries: Do environmental regulations matter?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    15. Wu, Yilin & Huang, Shilei, 2022. "The effects of digital finance and financial constraint on financial performance: Firm-level evidence from China's new energy enterprises," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    16. Wang, Zhaohua & Li, Hao & Deng, Nana & Cheng, Kaiwei & Lu, Bin & Zhang, Bin & Wang, Bo, 2020. "How to effectively implement an incentive-based residential electricity demand response policy? Experience from large-scale trials and matching questionnaires," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Hongsheng Fang & Xufei Zhang & Lin Guo, 2023. "Productivity effects of corporate income tax: Evidence from China," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(6), pages 1815-1842, June.
    2. Zhang, Yali & Li, Wenqi & Wu, Feng, 2020. "Does energy transition improve air quality? Evidence derived from China’s Winter Clean Heating Pilot (WCHP) project," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 206(C).
    3. Triest, Robert K., 1998. "Econometric Issues in Estimating the Behavioral Response to Taxation: A Nontechnical Introduction," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association, vol. 51(n. 4), pages 761-72, December.
    4. Xufei Zhang & Hongsheng Fang & Lin Guo, 2023. "Corporate Endowment Insurance Fee Reduction and Employee Wages: Evidence from China," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 31(2), pages 192-222, March.
    5. Yang, Zhenbing & Fan, Meiting & Shao, Shuai & Yang, Lili, 2017. "Does carbon intensity constraint policy improve industrial green production performance in China? A quasi-DID analysis," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 271-282.
    6. Triest, Robert K., 1998. "Econometric Issues in Estimating the Behavioral Response to Taxation: A Nontechnical Introduction," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 51(4), pages 761-772, December.
    7. Laiqun Jin & Xiuyan Liu & Sam Hak Kan Tang, 2021. "High-Technology Zones, Misallocation of Resources among Cities and Aggregate Productivity: Evidence from China," Economics Discussion / Working Papers 21-11, The University of Western Australia, Department of Economics.
    8. Jingyi Tian & Jun Nagayasu, 2023. "Financial Systemic Risk behind Artificial Intelligence:Evidence from China," TUPD Discussion Papers 44, Graduate School of Economics and Management, Tohoku University.
    9. Parry, Ian W.H., 1999. "Tax Deductions, Consumption Distortions, and the Marginal Excess Burden of Taxation," Discussion Papers 10801, Resources for the Future.
    10. Michael Smart & Mark Stabile, 2005. "Tax credits, insurance, and the use of medical care," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 38(2), pages 345-365, May.
    11. Liu, Cenjie & Fang, Jiayu & Xie, Rui, 2021. "Energy policy and corporate financial performance: Evidence from China's 11th five-year plan," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    12. Zhang, Shuaishuai & Wu, Libo & Zhou, Yang, 2020. "The impact of negative list policy on sectoral structure: Based on complex network and DID analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 278(C).
    13. Chang, Angela E., 1996. "Tax Policy, Lump-Sum Pension Distributions, and Household Saving," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 49(2), pages 235-249, June.
    14. Kreiner, Claus Thustrup & Munch, Jakob Roland & Whitta-Jacobsen, Hans Jørgen, 2015. "Taxation and the long run allocation of labor: Theory and Danish evidence," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 74-86.
    15. Power, Laura & Rider, Mark, 2002. "The effect of tax-based savings incentives on the self-employed," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(1), pages 33-52, July.
    16. Guo, Qingbin & Zhong, Jinrong, 2022. "The effect of urban innovation performance of smart city construction policies: Evaluate by using a multiple period difference-in-differences model," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    17. Yue-Jun Zhang & Jing-Yue Liu, 2019. "Does carbon emissions trading affect the financial performance of high energy-consuming firms in China?," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 95(1), pages 91-111, January.
    18. Emmanuel Saez, 2004. "Reported Incomes and Marginal Tax Rates, 1960–2000: Evidence and Policy Implications," NBER Chapters, in: Tax Policy and the Economy, Volume 18, pages 117-174, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    19. Sun, Yajie & Liao, Wen-Chi, 2021. "Resource-Exhausted City Transition to continue industrial development," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    20. Li, Bo & Han, Yukai & Wang, Chensheng & Sun, Wei, 2022. "Did civilized city policy improve energy efficiency of resource-based cities? Prefecture-level evidence from China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Tax incentives; New energy listed companies; Difference-in-difference; New energy industry;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C23 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models
    • D04 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Microeconomic Policy: Formulation; Implementation; Evaluation
    • G18 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Government Policy and Regulation
    • H2 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue
    • H32 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents - - - Firm
    • L25 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Performance

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:86:y:2020:i:c:s0140988319304517. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/eneco .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.